Second Vows Adored by the Billionaire novel Chapter 29

"You should probably call her and check in. She's still pregnant, and we don't want anything to happen to her," Brook said hesitantly, unable to hold back the reminder.

Victor shook his head dismissively. "She'll be fine. Eloise has always been sharp. That time, she went to Montana to get those matsutake mushrooms, and some guys tried to rob her on the way back. She still managed to protect the mushrooms, though—she only lost a couple thousand bucks in cash."

Brook didn't say anything more after that and just let out a soft sigh.

Victor was about to say something else when his phone suddenly rang. The moment he saw "Ellie" on the screen, his eyes lit up instantly. "Ellie, are you back? Where are you right now?"

Eloise's voice on the other end sounded raspy and rough. "Victor, I'm... on my way home."

Victor caught the strange tone immediately. "Why does your voice sound like that? Have you been crying?"

"We'll talk when I get there." Eloise's hoarse voice cut through the line, and then she hung up abruptly.

The second the call ended, the inside of Chris' van suddenly went dead silent.

Then, Eloise and Chris locked eyes, and they both burst into hysterical laughter at the same time.

"This is all your fault. You just had to make me eat that sashimi, and now I'm having an allergic reaction. My throat's all swollen up, and my voice is still completely shot."

Eloise pretended to be annoyed and poked Chris' cheek.

Chris grinned mischievously. "Actually, that works out perfectly. You can just go back and tell Victor you finally managed to climb the Rockies and pick those alpine bearberries, but then you caught a fever and some locals rescued you, so you had to give them the berries as a thank-you gift."

Chris was obviously joking around, but Eloise nodded seriously. "That's exactly what I'm planning to do."

Chris stared at her like she'd just met an alien. "Wait, hold on. Victor actually expects you to climb the Rockies to pick alpine berries while you're pregnant? Is he out of his damn mind?

"If he wants them so badly, can't he just pay someone to get them? Why the hell do you have to risk your life? Does he think he's some kind of king or something?"

Eloise gave a helpless shrug. "It's my fault, really. I used to think that buying things with money didn't count as genuine love, so I did stupid stuff like this every single year."

Chris' jaw literally dropped. She looked Eloise up and down, trying to process what she'd just heard.

It was almost impossible to imagine that Eloise, who'd grown up as the pampered princess of the Belton family with everything she could ever want, had actually degraded herself like this for love.

It was completely insane. But then again, considering her childhood, it kind of made sense.

She'd never lacked money growing up, but she'd always lacked love. The kind of desperate, aching lack that never went away.

Chris couldn't help pulling her into a tight hug. "Stop beating yourself up about it. You were just trying to prove how much you cared. That bastard's the one who didn't deserve it."

Eloise's eyes instantly went hot and dry. "I thought if I just tried hard enough to be good to someone, I'd get real love back. I wanted to prove to Grandpa that I'd made the right choice, but I was so wrong. I was ridiculously, stupidly wrong."

All the words she'd been holding back for so long finally came pouring out, and Eloise couldn't stop herself from choking up. She completely fell apart.

"What thing?" Eloise gave a bitter smile. "The rumors about him being..."

"Exactly!" Chris slapped her thigh. "His assistant is better looking than a top male model, and the two of them have been inseparable for years. I mean, come on, what normal guy makes it to 30 without a single woman anywhere near him?"

Eloise's heart sank. "So basically I'm supposed to live like a nun while sleeping with him?"

"Look, there are so many potential marriage partners out there. Why pick this one?" Chris grabbed her arm and shook it urgently. "Chicago is full of successful young men! Just pick someone else!"

Eloise's tense shoulders relaxed a little. "Okay, I'll think about it when the time comes."

The driver pulled up near the villa where Eloise and Victor lived.

Eloise politely turned down Chris' offer to walk her in. Her model friend was just way too eye-catching.

She dragged her luggage down the tree-lined street alone, and the night breeze brushed against her tired face.

Just a few steps away from the villa gate, she suddenly heard the harsh screech of brakes behind her.

Before she could turn around, someone yanked her hard into their arms.

A familiar scent hit her, mixed with a faint smell of alcohol. "Ellie, you're finally back. I missed you so much."